Wage theft has been defined as having employees work off the clock, for example. It is a violation of labor law.

Businesses that have broken state or federal wage and labor laws would be disqualified from receiving property tax abatements, business licenses or county contracts. Companies seeking to do business with Cook County also would be required to file an affidavit certifying they have not violated any wage and labor laws.

"We are hoping companies would think twice about engaging in wage theft," said Edward Olivieri, a spokesman for Commissioner Jeff Tobolski, who introduced the ordinance.

Olivieri called wage theft a nationwide epidemic, adding that a University of Illinois study revealed that employers steal more than $7.3 million per week from low-wage workers in Cook County. The legislation, he said, also protects businesses from unscrupulous companies that compete unfairly by taking advantage of workers.

Adam Kader, director of Arise Chicago Worker Center, which pushed for the ordinance, said wage theft often is documented. For example, he said, a worker came to the center last week with a pay stub that showed he had worked more than 40 hours at a regular rate. The employer, he said, had stolen the overtime pay of that worker.

"The goal for the worker center is to deter wage theft from happening," Kader said.